âIn the Nazi death camp of Sobibor in Eastern Poland, knitting saved several Jewish women from deathâ
With the Nazi forces rounding up Jews and anyone else they deemed âunworthyâ, they had en...

Summary: Medieval Middle Eastern Knitting

Knitting as both a practical and creative craft has survived in certain areas of the Middle East and North Africa until the present. Village women in Turkey and Iran knit woollen gloves, socks and slippers in rich colours and complex geometrical designs without consulting any pattern charts. Menâs red and black pillbox caps – the chechias of Tunisia – are created from knitted bags of white wool which are shrunk, dyed and beaten into shape. Smart garments both hand- and machine-knitted are created for Turkeyâs highly profitable fashion industry. Such a securely based craft is surely the heir to a well-established tradition especially in an area famed for the beauty and quality of its textiles. Pieces of knitting, however, like all textiles are perishable and few surviving examples have until now been located which would illuminate the history of the craft. It is now accepted that knitting originated in the Middle East most probably in Egypt where a group of precious fragments attributed to the 5th-6th, and 10th-14th centuries have been recovered mainly from burial sites. There are also more firmly dated pieces from Spain recovered from royal tombs in the monastery of Las Huelgas, near Burgos which was founded in 1187 by King Alfonso VIII (1156-1214) of Leon and Castile and his wife Eleanor of England (1161-1216) daughter of Henry II Plantaganet and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

I aim to review the main pieces and group them in a chronological sequence. I shall also examine the techniques involved which in some cases have been incorrectly identified and discuss the designs in comparison with medieval Egyptian woven and embroidered textiles which may provide clues to identification and date. I shall refer to modern examples which illustrate the survival of techniques and designs.

My lecture will be illustrated with 35 mm colour slides and examples of contemporary knitting

Select Bibliography

General Reading
Rutt, Richard, A history of hand knitting. Batsford London 1987.
Thomas, Mary, Knitting Book. London 1938.